Diablo 3
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The Soapbox: The Raid Finder ruined raiding
I don't typically limit myself to ranting about only one game at a time, but I decided to make an exception this week and speak out against World of Warcraft's Raid Finder mechanic. I was running a small and modestly successful raiding guild when this system was introduced, and my team definitely felt the onslaught of this guild-destroying game mechanic first hand. Raid Finder, commonly dubbed LFR by the cool kids in Orgrimmar, is a system that demolishes the competency barrier that stands in the way of freshly level-capped characters and normal raiding content. The system allows players to join a random raiding group in order to tackle a nerfed version of a normal raid and exists mainly to maximise inclusion in the game's best PvE endgame content. LFR was quite popular among casual players that were usually passed up when it came to raiding group formation, but it didn't offer much progress to seasoned raiders. The gear gained had lower stats than its corresponding normal raid counterpart, but the LFR tier simply didn't need the co-ordination required of a group tackling regular raids. A void was created somewhere in between the casual masses who could benefit from the LFR mechanic and the hardcore raiders that simply did not need help with progression. My casual raiding guild was caught in the middle and ultimately met its demise at the hands of LFR, which simultaneously depleted the PUG pool and gave our members another way to see the endgame content they wanted without putting in virtual blood, sweat, and tears.
The Game Archaeologist: A brief history of roguelikes
As with adventure games, it appears as though the mobile market has triggered a resurgence in the popularity of roguelikes with both developers and players. I've been stumbling over them left and right for a while now (I'm quite fond of FTL, which takes the roguelike into space), and every time I can't help but think of how this genre is almost the antithesis of an MMO. Instead of persistent worlds rich in lore, roguelikes favor randomized dungeon crawls with little or no story. Instead of immortal characters that grow with a player over months and years, roguelikes feature permadeath around every corner. Yet there's love for both in many gamers' hearts and perhaps even a few similarities that help to transcend differences. I find roguelikes fascinating because they are so hardcore, they yank me out of my comfy little leveling bubble, and they force me to use my brains for something more than figuring out whether it's time to use the "2" key once more. So what the heck, let's take a quick trip through roguelikes this week and see where -- if at all -- they connect with MMOs.
Diablo 3 listed for Xbox One by Best Buy Canada, Argos
Diablo 3 may yet roll onto Xbox One, if listings spotted at two major retailers are anything to go by. Best Buy Canada (via IGN), and UK outlet Argos listed it for Microsoft's console in the last 24 hours, and while Blizzard isn't confirming the port, it isn't denying it either. "One of our goals is to bring Diablo 3 to as many players as possible," reads a Blizzard statement given to Eurogamer, "but we don't have any other platform announcements to share at this time." That sounds a bit like what Blizzard said when it unveiled the Xbox 360 version to go alongside the PS3 one. Perhaps we'll see the same deal with the upcoming PS4 version, which is due for release some time this year. Altogether more confirmed is the March 25 release date for Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls - that's for PC and Mac, although Blizzard has confirmed the expansion for PS4 as well.
Diablo III: Reaper of Souls is expected to begin pre-downloading in January
While Diablo III: Reaper of Souls isn't due to come out until March 25th, players should be able to pre-download the expansion some time this month. On the Diablo III forums, Community Manager Stephany Johnson confirmed that Blizzard is trying to get data to customers in January: "The exact date that the predownload will start is still TBD, but we're targeting this month if all goes well. Note: this download will begin automatically (meaning, you shouldn't need to do anything special)." Johnson went on to say that if players don't pre-download, they'll get the same data when they patch up to 2.0.1. While Blizzard typically makes some features available once its pre-expansion patches go live, the meat of Reaper of Souls -- the new class, the new act, and adventure mode -- won't be playable until March 25th.
Battle.net beefs up parental controls
Kiddies will find it tougher to spend money in Blizzard's games, as the studio is expanding its parental controls to include locks on in-game purchases. Blizzard is notifying relevant users of this change via email and on the forums. Starting January 7th, any Battle.net account with parental controls enabled will automatically prevent users from spending money in World of Warcraft's cash shop, Hearthstone's cash shop, or Diablo III's soon-to-be-closed real-money auction house. Account users will be able to enable those purchases by logging into their account and changing the settings.
Create your own papercraft Treasure Goblin from Diablo III
The folks on the Diablo III team have decided to wish everyone a happy holiday with a fun gift -- a papercraft Treasure Goblin complete with treasure bag. This delightful and kind of creepy little guy, appropriately dubbed Lewt, is free to download on the Diablo III site. Included along with the printable sheets are step by step directions to putting both Lewt and his treasure bag together, just in time for the holidays. Once construction is complete, you can fill Lewt's treasure bag with whatever bits of treasure you think the little guy would appreciate. And once you've done that, be sure to take some pictures of Lewt in action. Tweet your photos @Diablo with the hashtag #WHERESMYLEWT to show off your photos, and you could find yourself on the official Twitter or Facebook -- Blizzard will be sharing submitted photos, as well as photos of their own, throughout the rest of the holidays. For more information, the downloadable printout, and instructions, visit the official website.
The Daily Grind: Are MMO beta NDAs counterproductive?
In the last month, Massively staffers (and no doubt some of you readers!) have taken part in several high-profile beta tests, and they all seem to fall into one of two categories: those that guard their games behind NDAs thick enough to protect all the gold in Fort Knox, and those that just don't seem to care. And I've gotta say, when my screenshots come out with watermarks plastered all over them, obscuring what I'm looking at and preventing NDA-breakers from ripping videos, nowadays my gut reaction is not wow, what a well-organized beta but dude, what are they trying to hide? Diablo III's upcoming expansion, by contrast, slipped into closed beta with a wink and a shrug and nary an NDA in sight. Talk about us, Blizzard seemed to say. Screencap us. We're gorgeous. We're ready. But upcoming major MMORPGs give off a terrified vibe, even when they have nothing to be worried about. NDA violators will break their agreements anyway, and the studio relinquishes the control it seeks to retain to exactly the malicious testers it hoped to squelch. What do you think -- are MMO beta NDAs counterproductive? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls releases March 25, pre-orders detailed
Death walks when Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls is unleashed on March 25. Blizzard announced today the launch will kick off on PC and Mac, as well as revealing a ton of pre-order loot to get players click, click, clicking away. The Standard Edition will grant access to the game for $39.99, while the Digital Deluxe Edition at $59.99 includes spectral hound minion for Diablo 3, a treasure goblin pet for World of Warcraft and portraits for StarCraft 2. Finally, the Collector's Edition includes everything from Digital Deluxe, plus an Angel of Death mouse pad, art book and behind the scenes Blu-ray/DVD. Oh wait, there's one more edition, the Soul Asylum edition... but that'll only cost your soul*! *No, there isn't a Soul Asylum edition. It involves a runaway train that's never coming back.
Diablo III: Reaper of Souls coming March 25th, 2014
Get out your checkbooks (are those still used?) if you're a Diablo III fan because Blizzard has put a street date on Reaper of Souls: March 25th, 2014. This release date is for the PC and Mac only, with the PlayStation 4 release date to be announced later. Even though you won't be able to play the expansion for three months, you can pay for it today. That's so considerate of the studio, isn't it? Those who pre-purchase Reaper of Souls have the choice of three editions. The standard edition is $39.99 and the digital deluxe version (with extra goodies like a spectral hound minion) is $59.99. Alternatively, you can try to snag one of the collector's editions (with extra extra goodies) for $79.99 at select retail stores. The expansion includes a new act, the Crusader character, the Loot 2.0 system, more class skills, new modes, and more.
Diablo III: Reaper of Souls closed beta has begun
The closed beta for Diablo III: Reaper of Souls has officially begun. Players that have opted in to the beta should begin checking their email for beta invites. Reaper of Souls, the first expansion for Diablo III, features all-new content as well as the new Crusader class, enchanting, transmogrification and of course, lots and lots of frantic mouse clicking. Players that have received a beta invite can check their Battle.net accounts to verify that the license has been added -- or if you've received a Closed Beta key, you can add it to your account by logging in to your Battle.net page. For players that have yet to receive an invitation to the closed beta, make sure you've opted in on your Battle.net Beta Profile Settings page -- and while you're at it, make sure the page has the latest system specifications for your computer. Keep in mind that with the closed beta, you must have an active Diablo III license attached to your account -- and that license needs to be in good standing in order to be eligible. No banned or suspended accounts. Also, as with any beta test, the risk of phishing attempts runs a little higher. If you receive an email that states you're in the beta, be sure you don't click any links in the email itself. Instead, log into your Battle.net account to check that the license has been added, or to manually add a game code. For more information on the Diablo III: Reaper of Souls closed beta, take a look at Blizzard's official page -- and good luck to all those that have opted in!
Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls closed beta officially underway
Blizzard has flipped the switch on the closed beta for Diablo 3's first expansion, Reaper of Souls. Invitations are being sent out now, so keep an eye on your Battle.net account to see if you got in. This beta, which would normally only be available to friends and family of Blizzard, will be open to "valued media contacts" and 3,000 of Diablo 3's most active players. The beta requires no NDA signature, so participants are free to capture footage and stream as much as they want. We anticipate footage will be hitting YouTube as soon as tonight. Blizzard has posted a lengthy FAQ on how to opt into the beta, report bugs and generally contribute toward creating the best expansion possible. There's also a specific process you'll need to follow in order to import your existing character, so be sure to read through the FAQ before diving in.
PlayStation Europe wraps up Christmas discounts for Diablo 3, Spelunky [update]
On the second deal of Christmas, PlayStation Europe offered to me: Diablo 3 on PS3 for £30, and Spelunky for £5.50 on Vita, with an additional 10 percent off Derek Yu's hard-as-nails platformer for PlayStation Plus members ... in a pear tree. Alright, it's not catchy, but it is a decent second batch for the 12 Deals of Christmas. The PS Europe promo runs until Christmas Day, with today's deals available until December 5. A word of caution on Spelunky: The game should feature cross-buy, meaning a purchase of the Vita version unlocks the PS3 version. That said, the PlayStation Blog's deal specifically marks out Vita, and on the PlayStation Store the offer is only for the Vita version. We've reached out to Sony to confirm and clarify what today's discount specifically applies to. Update: A SCEE representative confirmed to Joystiq the discounted Vita version of Spelunky features cross-buy, so if you buy it you'll unlock the PS3 version too.
Free for All: MMORPGs for your new console
Consoles and MMOs do not have the stand-offish relationship that they used to have. In fact, there are so many different MMOs to choose from on consoles that it's seriously tempting to pick up one of the new ones -- the Xbox One or PlayStation 4 -- even though I wasn't planning on it for a long, long time. I enjoy using a controller with MMOs so much that I plan on covering the subject more in the future. So let's get to the list of MMOs that are currently on consoles or that will be coming out on consoles in the near(ish) future. Massively's own Mike Foster put together a fantastic list last summer, but I thought I would update and pass it on. After all, the new consoles are officially here... so be sure to reference the list when you need a new MMO to play on your shiny new console!
Azeroth and beyond: Nine years of World of Warcraft
In 1999, Blizzard Entertainment was well on its way to becoming something of a titan in the PC gaming space. Riding high on hits like Diablo, Warcraft II, and the barely-a-year-old StarCraft, Blizzard had established itself as a purveyor of quirky, well-made, and entertaining games mostly of the RTS variety. However, something else was brewing behind closed doors at Blizzard's Irvine campus. While sequels to Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo were all in development (and hotly anticipated), the company had also quietly started work on a brand-new massively-multiplayer online game set in one of the studio's existing game universes. That game, of course, was World of Warcraft. And nine years ago tomorrow, it completely changed the face of MMO gaming.
Warlords of Draenor, Blizzard to make appearance at DreamHack Winter 2013
Blizzard Entertainment will be making an appearance at DreamHack Winter 2013 in Jönköping, Sweden -- and it's just been announced that Warlords of Draenor will as well. DreamHack is the world's largest digital festival and holds the official world record as the world's largest LAN party, promising an exciting time for Europeans attending the event and also an opportunity to play and see Warlords of Draenor, the new WoW expansion, firsthand. Along with Warlords, those attending will also be able to play both Hearthstone and Diablo III: Reaper of Souls. In addition, Blizzard will have several Hearthstone-themed contests for those attending, including a sound-a-like contest, a card-crafting contest, and a contest that will have players finding clues and building decks out of seven secret cards in order to challenge the Hearthstone crew. If that weren't enough, the European Community team will be on-hand to say hello, chat, mingle, and maybe even settle down to play some Diablo III. If you missed out on BlizzCon, this is the perfect opportunity to get a glimpse and some hands-on-time with the next expansion. DreamHack Winter 2013 takes place November 28 - December 1, 2013. For more information on the festival, as well as tickets and scheduling, be sure to check out DreamHack's official site.
Blizzard to launch Diablo III's Reaper of Souls closed beta before the end of the year
Blizzard Entertainment's friends and family beta of Diablo III's Reaper of Souls expansion is officially underway with invites going out to, well, friends and family of Blizzard employees. However, Blizzard is extending the beta pool by about 3,000 players; this time around the company plans to send invites to a few "valued media contacts and key members of the Blizzard community" in addition to the normal employee keys. Invites are already going out, so keep an eye on your inbox if you feel as though you fit the description. If you don't, take solace in the fact that Blizzard has confirmed that closed beta proper will launch before year's end and that while invites will be limited, they will be sent to a wider range of Diablo players. The beta will include all expansion content minus the final boss. None of the betas appears to be protected by NDA, meaning streams, videos, screenshots, and spoilers will soon be available across the web.
Blizzard expands Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls beta reach
Blizzard is preparing to initiate its beta testing phase for Diablo 3's upcoming expansion, Reaper of Souls. In the past, Blizzard has only invited friends and family members of its employees to play during these beta phases, but this time the developer is inviting "valued media contacts" and 3,000 of Diablo 3's most active players, who have opted-in for beta testing through Battle.net, across the world. The beta isn't restricted by an NDA, so participants are free to post videos and articles about their experiences. This beta will include the full Reaper of Souls expansion, minus the final boss fight – so be mindful of spoilers when hunting down coverage. Blizzard says the beta has only been sent out to a select few so far, but it'll move into full-on closed beta testing before year's end. If you want in, make sure you're signed up for beta testing on your Battle.net profile.
Diablo III's lead designer says offline mode was 'wrong', reaffirms online requirement
If you've been holding out hope that Blizzard would cave in and offer an offline mode on the PC for Diablo III with its Reaper of Souls expansion, don't hold your breath. A recent dev interview really put the kibosh on that idea: Lead designer Kevin Martens stated pretty clearly that dividing the community into online and offline groups is not now, nor will it be, in the cards. When asked about the offline mode in Diablo II, he pointed out that the community back then was very unhappy about that division and added: "That was the wrong choice to allow people to play offline, and we still stand by that. And we think Internet access is widespread. If someone has no Internet access, then yeah, Diablo III is not the game for them." In the interview, Martens and Art Director Christian Lichtner also talked about the direction of Diablo's III and the game's economy sans auction house -- notably, that stockpiling items before the change won't give much of an advantage because the post 2.0 patch economy will be full of new items that can be acquired only through play.
Blizzard denies possible gamepad support for Diablo 3 PC
Those hoping the surprisingly intuitive controls of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 incarnations of Diablo 3 might make their way to the PC are out of luck. According to Blizzard, the games are just too different to make that work properly. "The rhythm on PC is tactactactactactac - you're clicking the mouse, you're telling your character where to go," said senior level designer Matthew Berger. "On console, the rhythm is very different. It flows more, because you're constantly repositioning your character with the thumbstick; you're really never stationary on console, whereas on PC you're a lot more stationary ... When you're playing on the PC, you're not really looking at your character as much, you're kind of focusing on the cursor. Whereas on console it's the exact opposite, you're drawn in." That constant motion is the crux of the problem here. The camera in console versions of Diablo 3 is a bit more zoomed-in than its PC counterparts, and when combined with the thumbstick evade, players are presented with a game that is similar, but plays out much more frenetically than its computer counterparts. Bringing that same freedom of movement to the PC game would break its balance. "[I]f I let you use the controller on the PC, then I have to let you use the user interface that goes with it," Berger told Eurogamer, "and if I give you the roll and I haven't throttled the number of enemies attacking you because the mouse-and-keyboard players can handle all those enemies, but with a controller you have too many guys ... The games have really been structured to take advantage of their environment and their ecosystem, so in the same way it would not be a good fit to put a mouse and keyboard on the console." "It wouldn't work," Berger added.
BlizzCon 2013: Reaper of Souls Hands-on gameplay impressions
At BlizzCon 2013, I was lucky enough to sit down at one of Blizzard's demo machines and play through the first part of the new Diablo 3 Reaper of Souls expansion as the new class, the Crusader. This article will have some spoilers for the new content, so if you're trying to avoid that, beware. Crusading The demo character was a male Crusader, set at level 33. He came with a few powers preset, which I used for the demo. For the left mouse button, a single target Slash attack struck the enemy with holy power. For the right button, Fist of the Heavens sent a huge beam of Holy Energy from the heavens around the Crusader, followed up by electric bolts that split off and attacked any enemies still standing. This right click, of course, cost Wrath, which is the Crusader's resource and regenerates like a combination of a rogue's energy and a death knight's runic power from WoW.
